The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission will hold its spring quarterly meeting April 15-17 at agency headquarters, 1601 Elmerton Avenue, in Harrisburg.

Commission committees will meet beginning at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, April 15. Committee meetings will resume at 1 p.m., Monday, April 16. Committee meetings will conclude with sessions beginning at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, April 17, followed by formal consideration of the agenda by the full Commission beginning at 10:30 a.m. All committee meetings, and the review of the agenda, are open to the public and attendance is encouraged.

On the agenda are a number of property-related items, including the potential acquisition of two fishing easements in Erie County. The Commission has been offered an easement on over 2,350 linear feet of Crooked Creek as it flows across a parcel of property in Springfield Township, Erie County. The easement will be for public fishing, boating, and riparian and fishery management and will include the stream corridor and extend at least 29 feet back from the top of the bank. In addition to the fishing easement, an additional easement for parking, and a path from the parking area to the creek, is being offered. The easement parcel is located along the south side of Route 5 and extends south along the creek. Crooked Creek in this area does provide steelhead fishing opportunities; however, the parcel under consideration is not currently open to public fishing. Also, Crooked Creek upstream from this area received several trout stockings in 2006, and the acquisition of the subject rights will provide additional trout fishing opportunities.

Another potential easement that will be considered is for property along and over a portion of Walnut Creek. Walnut Creek provides significant steelhead fishing opportunities. The property being considered is also popular because of its proximity (roughly 1/3 of a mile south) to the Commission’s Walnut Creek Marina property.

In both instances, the funding proposed for the acquisition of these easements would come from the sale of the special Lake Erie fishing permits. The Commission has identified ensuring access to the state’s waterways as critical for the long-term future of fishing and boating in the Commonwealth. The Erie program is one example of the PFBC’s commitment to addressing access. Boating facilities grants, litigation to protect public rights on navigable waters, and close coordination with local, state and federal government agencies are other activities in which the Commission is actively engaged. Individual anglers can also play an important role in ensuring public access by respecting private landowner rights, picking up litter, and participating in stream clean-up events.

A complete copy of the meeting schedule and the full agenda for the spring meeting can be found at the minutes and agendas page of the Commission’s web site.